GTW Prometheus S

The GTW-5 Prometheus (standard) Cannon is one of the best-known weapons of the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance. Originally developed during the first Great War, it was temporarily retired due to shortages of critical materials. With the development of gas-mining vessels to extract these materials from nebular clouds, this popular design has been recommissioned.

The Prometheus S is an excellent weapon, boasting high hull damage, high shield damage, and very good range. Almost every fighter and bomber in the Terran and Vasudan catalogs mount this gun. Disadvantages include a moderate-to-high energy usage, and a relatively slow rate of fire that requires patience and marksmanship to line up shots.

Contents

Tech Room Data

The original GTW-5 Prometheus S was removed from service when the link to Earth was lost and the GTVA was unable to obtain sufficient quantities of argon (a required element in the Prometheus's power-generation module). Recent deployment of Anuket and Zephyrus gas miners has enabled us to resume production of the GTW-5 Prometheus S. The S-type is a minor variant of the original Prometheus laser cannon. The S-type's faster recharge cycle and lower energy drain cause many pilots to prefer it over the R variant.

Notes

Veteran Comments

For some reason (probably balancing) many of the original Prometheus' stats were changed for FS2, making it a weaker weapon in many respects.

There is much debate on which GTW-5 is better the Prometheus S or the GTW Prometheus, it is up to the user to decide. The Prometheus S has lower energy requirements, longer range, and more single hit damage than the GTW UD-8 Kayser, but consumes much more energy, has a slower firing rate, and is less efficient than the other standard FreeSpace 2 weapon, the GTW Subach HL-7. If you like firing very accurately, and don't care about fire rate as much, this is the perfect gun for you.

Ideal targets for the Prometheus are larger vessels, such as bombers, cruisers and corvettes. It does a great deal of hull damage. But because of its full shield damage value, it is extremely effective against bombers. As another note, the Prometheus of FS2 acts more like the Banshee of FS1, though with considerably better damage against hulls and lesser damage against shields.

Fires farther and faster, hits harder and penetrates shields better than the FS1 version, but pays with a slightly lower fire rate and greater energy consumption; in fact about all this and the GTW Prometheus have in common is superiority to the GTW Prometheus R.

Its projectile speed is the fastest and longest lasting (thus extending its range) after the Maxim and the Morning Star. The higher speed increases accuracy for the same shooting distance (obviously!) against maneuvering targets. This weapon is in fact perfect for taking down Shivan bombers.

It's worth noting that, if you outfit both primary banks of an Erinyes with this thing, it is entirely possible to one-salvo-kill some of the lighter fighters in the game.

After spending a long time trying to determine what the best primary to give your wingmen in the FreeSpace 2 campaign was, I've noticed that they seem to do best with this weapon. The high volley damage and relatively long range can be exploited to great effect by the AI's aiming abilities. If you want to boost your wingmates' effectiveness, and you have this weapon available, it's a great choice.

The energy usage of this weapon, although significant, is not as severe as one may assume. For example, the GTF Perseus, with all energy diverted away from weapons, can fire both banks simultaneously on Normal difficulty for about 40 times before running out of energy. These volleys are capable of destroying a Manticore in 2 hits and an Aeshma in 3.